Mayor Don Wesely today thanked all those who have contributed so far to
Pennies for Lincoln and urged more people and organizations to become
involved in the public art campaign. Pennies for Lincoln has so far
raised $2,600 of the $17,500 needed to fund a new sculpture of a young
Abraham Lincoln. "The Rail Joiner" will be placed at the entrance of
the new Justice and Law Enforcement Center, 575 South 10th Street.

"If everyone in Lincoln gave just nine cents, we would easily reach our
goal of raising 1.75 million pennies," Mayor Wesely said. "This is a
great project that individuals, schools, businesses and organizations
can adopt."

Penny collectors have been placed at locations throughout Lincoln
including the Mill, all Russ's and Super Saver stores, U-Stop
Convenience Shops and Valentino's Restaurants. These businesses are
also having special promotions to raise pennies. The Lincoln Journal
Star is donating advertising space every week to promote the campaign,
and the radio stations at Broadcast House (KLIN, KFGE, KEZG and KKUL)
will host a special event. Other businesses that have become involved
are the Clocktower Merchants, People's Natural Gas and Big Kmart.

The giant penny provided by Lincoln Federal Savings Bank was moved this
week from JCPenney to Mayor Wesely's office on the second floor of the
County-City Building, 555 South 10th. At a news conference today,
students from Cavett Elementary placed nearly $400 in the giant penny.
Other schools working with the campaign include Lefler Middle School and
Kahoa Elementary, which has a web site for teachers and students who
want to be involved at http://kahoa.lps.org.

Other major partners in the project are the Lincoln Arts Council (LAC),
the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery at UNL and the City-County Public
Building Commission. Margaret Berry, LAC Executive Director, said the
estimated cost of the project is $40,000, and much of that will be
covered by the Sheldon and other donors. LAC has a web site for the
public to keep track of the project at www.artscene.org/pennies.

"The Rail Joiner" was completed by American sculptor Louis Slobodkin
(1903-1975) in the 1930s, and the original is now on display at the
Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C. In 1996, the Sheldon
received a plaster cast of the sculpture and the right to reproduce it.
The Sheldon is loaning a reproduction of the sculpture to the city for
permanent public display. The statue, standing more than seven feet
tall, is being cast in bronze by Omaha artist Les Bruning and is
scheduled to be placed on display this spring.